Washoku - Healing With Food

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Jiko-Gyoushi: The "Release Training" from Japan

What is "Jiko-Gyoushi" and How It Works

Jiko-Gyoushi in Japanese means "Obervation of oneself" and implies a training which integrates
the mental, emotional, spiritual and physical aspects of each individual. As one of its main purposes is to get rid of patterns and emotions/feelings that can be dangerous to our health, we can also call it "Release Training".

Jiko-Gyoushi gives us the necessary tools that we need to
become aware of both our behavioural patterns and of the feelings/sensations we experience
through the close obervation of ourselves. When our mind becomes too overwhelmed with worries and things
we have to do, our body's and behavoiur awareness can help us to focus on what we are
experiencing in that moment. It is easy for our mind to get lost in what has
happened in the past or what will happen in the future, but if we allow
ourselves to focus on the present, we can become aware of what we are "holding” and therefore release it. For example, we could feel tightness, pain or
an uncomfortable feeling in our shoulders, neck, head or stomach, but we may not
even know that we are uncomfortable until we stop and pay "real" attention.

Get In Touch with Yourself

If we take
time to check within ourselves we can get in touch with what we are feeling and
experiencing rather than just being lost in our thoughts and activities. It is only
when we focus like this that we can actually start to notice other sensations
and also behavioural patterns that have been hidden until then. It is natural to wish not to see
the hidden sensations, especially because they often can be very uncomfortable.
But as these very same sensations are the only tools that can tell us about what
is going on within us, it is very important to observe them closely, to listen
to their messages, and then to healthily release them. It can sound difficult, or even impossible at first. But with the appropriate training anyone can do it.

Body Memory

The areas of
our bodies where we are tight, sore or unconfortable are the areas where we are in some way holding on
to something. Whenever we have had some painful or traumatic experience, we
carry not only the memory and feelings connected with that experience, but we
"remember" it physically as well. It is a kind of “body- memory” of
that event. Sometimes the connection can be very symbolic and not clear at all.
But actually it is not important to understand what the connection is; the real
important thing is to simply become aware of what we are experiencing.

Body & Soul

The
Jiko-Gyoushi Release Training, in combination with the Washoku diet and the Core Strengthening Training, is
something we can use in our everyday life in order to achieve growth and
healing. If we can become more aware of our bodies and of the feelings we carry
within us in a loving and compassionate way, we really and deeply can heal
ourselves. The awareness we develop in this way allows us to live our lives in
ways that are more reflective of who we really are and what we believe in.

For those who want to make a step further, meditation too is quite important, as it can help us in getting more detached from our demanding egos and in coming more directly in contact with our "spiritual selves".